What would you tell a family about progress?
Explain the reading evidence and agree what to check next.
The question
A family member asks what a pupil can do now in reading. The school has confirmed this person can receive the update. The two checks use comparable comprehension items.
| First check | Latest tracker | |
|---|---|---|
| Comprehension items | 5 | 5 |
| Correct answers recorded as independent | 2 | 4 |
Use the pupil’s own work in the school’s agreed setting.
“How would you describe progress and involve the family in the next step?”
Not saved by this site. Your browser may restore text when you navigate back.
A strong answer, step by step
Open each step in turn. This is one strong answer, not the only one.
Step 1: Start with the goal
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Show one example and invite the family’s observations.
The strong move. The work makes the update specific. The family may have useful observations the school has missed.
Start with a ranking against the rest of the class.
Tempting, but it misses something. The family asked what this pupil can do. A ranking adds no direct evidence about the skill.
See how a strong candidate says it
“I’d name the comprehension skill, share an example from the pupil’s work and ask what the family notices when they read together.”
Why it works: The work makes the update specific. The family may have useful observations the school has missed.
Step 2: Verify the tracker
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Verify the scoring basis with the teacher.
The strong move. The two numbers are useful together only if the skill and the scoring basis are comparable.
Repeat the tracker values as confirmed results.
Tempting, but it misses something. The tracker gives a label. The work and the teacher’s record establish how the answers were produced.
See how a strong candidate says it
“Before the meeting I’d check that the tasks are comparable and that the recorded correct answers were independent.”
Why it works: The two numbers are useful together only if the skill and the scoring basis are comparable.
Step 3: Correct the claim
The teacher confirms that 1 of the 4 correct answers on the latest check followed an adult hint.
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Report the independent and supported answers separately.
The strong move. The hint changes the independent count. It still gives evidence about what the pupil can do with support.
Tell the family that the independent score doubled.
Tempting, but it misses something. One of the four correct answers followed an adult hint. Three answers were independent.
See how a strong candidate says it
“The latest result is 3 of 5 independently, up from 2 of 5. One further answer was correct with a hint and one was incorrect.”
Why it works: The hint changes the independent count. It still gives evidence about what the pupil can do with support.
Step 4: Agree the next step
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Agree a next check and listen to what the family has noticed.
The strong move. A specific next check can show whether the improvement continues.
Describe the change as a proven trend and close the discussion.
Tempting, but it misses something. Two checks give a specific difference. They do not establish a trend or explain its cause.
See how a strong candidate says it
“I’d explain the two independent results, ask what the family sees and agree when the school will make a comparable check.”
Why it works: A specific next check can show whether the improvement continues.
The answer, in short
- Decision
- Report 3 of 5 independent answers and agree a comparable follow-up.
- Because
- The latest score includes one additional correct answer with a hint.
- What would change it
- Repeated independent results would give stronger evidence of progress.
Common traps
- Mixing independent and supported answers.
- Inferring a trend or a cause from two checks.
Check your answer
- I named the reading skill.
- I checked the score.
- I kept support visible.
- I asked for the family’s perspective.
Last reviewed Nov 11, 2026